Capital punishment dates back to the 18th century BC in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon. Under this code, twenty-five crimes, excluding murder, were punishable by death. In historical records, the first death sentence was imposed on an offender accused of magic in the 16th century BC in Egypt (Regio, 1997). Unfortunately, the death penalty is still practiced in some countries. For example, in Egypt, on March 24, 2014, the Minya Criminal Court handed down the death sentence against 529 supporters of former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi for their participation in violence (Amnesty International, 2014). Today, the United States also practices capital punishment. According to the DPIC fact sheet (2014), 20 criminals from different states have been executed this year in the United States. It is frustrating that in the 21st century we still hear about execution cases and new criminals being sentenced to death. Today, we must move away from this form of punishment. The death penalty should be abolished in the United States because it does not reduce crime rates, is immoral and goes against justice. Those who support the death penalty say it is an effective way to prevent the commission of a crime. According to Van den Haag (1983), the death penalty is the best way to deter murder because death is what horrifies people the most. He believes that there is no other way, even life imprisonment cannot deter murder to the same level as the death penalty, and he further argues that to prevent future homicides it is better to sentence the murderers to death. However, those who oppose the death penalty strictly believe that the death penalty is not an effective way to reduce the crime rate. The American Civil Liberties Union (2007) argues that long-term imprisonment is not less than the death penalty...... middle of paper ......h and guilty only if you are poorer and more innocent” (quoted in Bedau and Cassell, 2004). So the poor are more likely to be sentenced to death and some of them may be innocent. The terrifying consequence is that once the death penalty is imposed, it can never be reversed. No one can guarantee that there is no possibility of discovering evidence that could exonerate an innocent person, but since the death penalty is an irreversible process, an executed person will no longer benefit from any new evidence. So the death penalty should be abolished and life, the most precious thing a person can have, should not be endangered by such punishment and an innocent life should not suffer in place of a real criminal. The death penalty should be abolished and should never be an option for punishment. Carrying out murder is not justice, it is revenge..